Vitamin D3 your Neighborhood Superhero

I am sure by now you have caught some of the news on vitamin D deficiency and how this can seriously affect your health. Through the media and hopefully through your own research you may have learned that vitamin D is responsible for:

Healthy Bones & Joints

Healthy Colon & Digestion

Memory & Concentration

Healthy Thyroid Function

Breast & Prostate Health

Proper Cell Replication

Enhanced Immune System

But no one is giving any options on which type of vitamin D to buy. Most people opt to have their doctors write them a prescription for vitamin D which is OK but should not be not your optimal choice. Why?

Well because most vitamin D prescribed by doctors is in the form of vitamin D2 also called Ergocalciferol. However the over the counter vitamin D in the form of Vitamin D3, also called Cholecalciferol, is a much better choice. Studies have shown that prescription vitamin D2 is about 1/10 as effective as vitamin D3. Research has also shown that vitamin D2 also has a higher potential for toxicity when compared to vitamin D3.

In addition to the above issues with vitamin D2 it also has been found to have a much shorter half-life, which means that you not only need more of the vitamin to prevent or treat deficiency, but you also need to take a higher dose more frequently. Vitamin D3 however stays in your blood at a rate of 50% for up to 3 weeks after you take a dose. So it’s a much better option than D2.

Alrighty then, so where do you get a good vitamin D3 supplement? Well I am going to recommend two that I like. The first one is my preferred choice. It’s called Vitamin Code RAW D3 by Garden Life. I love this supplement because it’s the most complete one on the market. Vitamin Code RAW D3 offers probiotics and enzymes along with D3. It is also gluten and dairy-free with no soy allergens, binders or fillers. But another reason to choose Vitamin Code RAW D3 is because it is a raw source of vitamin D3. Oh and on the subject of naturally occurring vitamin D don’t think for a moment that it’s OK to over expose yourself and your kids to a cancer causing sun burn in the name of vitamin D, that’s just plain silly although we all are guilty of doing that at some point.

For more on healthy sun exposure and vitamin D please visit the below links for fantastic information:

Children need extra protection from the sun. Most skin damage from the sun occurs before the age of 18. One or two blistering sunburns before the age of 18 dramatically increases the risk of skin cancer. Encourage children to play in the shade, wear protective clothing and apply sunscreen every 2 hrs.

Ok now that we are finished with the lesson on safe and smart vitamin D related sun exposure we can resume on the topic of a great choice for vitamin D3. So where do you get Vitamin Code RAW D3? You can order online from various vitamin shops or at your local health food store. If you want to read more on Vitamin Code RAW D3 just click on the superhero picture at the beginning of this article. If you’re not a vegan or have a need for gluten free supplements or if you’re simply not interested in all the healthy ingredients in the Vitamin Code RAW D3 supplements; you can get the “el cheapo” version of D3 which is just plain old D3 and does the job at half the cost of the Vitamin Code RAW D3. For simple plain D3 I like to use the NOW Vitamin D softgels. You can read more on the NOW brand of vitamin D3 by clicking here

And if you are looking for a great vitamin D supplement for your babies and children I absolutely love these tasteless drops by Carlson Labs. You can purchase them here or at your neighborhood health food store.

If you want to read up on more articles relating to vitamin D visit any one of the links below: